I have a new Hero. His name is Alec Freeman.

"I don't like it.  These clouds give as much
cover as a G-string on a Belly Dancer."
- Col. Alec E. Freeman

I was excited and shocked to see the Fantasy Flight Games, the veritable Big Boss of Board Games, had gotten the rights to make an XCOM Board Game.

Now I like XCOM. My friends got me into it and I regret nothing. I only wish I weren't so pretentious so I could stand the classic UI and play it for what it was meant to be, of which the latest game is a small inkling into the devastation that is and should be Extraterrestrial Combat.

That doesn't mean it isn't fun.  Although I'm disappointed my favourite level, Demolition, was replaced, it's still an incredibly fun and tense game.

But it's been almost a year.  I've grown tired and complacent with the game.  I can predict most of the enemy placements and how to counter them. I've tried different skill sets and achieved all but a couple of achievements in Xbox's Enemy Within, which annoyingly doesn't share with the first Iteration because of it's Stand Alone status, so I can't go back and get those achievements without having to get the old game again.

I'm trying again though, attempting to finish the game on Impossible with as many benefits I can attain, so that I can start again and do the Penultimate Hardcore Game: Classic Ironman with all Second Wave features (bar Save Scum).  It's going to be a pain in the arse.  But hopefully will tide me over until the next DLC comes out.  Which I hope acts as a proper DLC on consoles, rather than a Stand-Alone game again.

To help me in my Impossible efforts, I looked to a TV show that helped inspire the original game.  I looked up all details and luckily found it on Hulu.  A 1970's show called UFO.

My fucking dog this show is hilarious.  It's incredibly 70's, with girls in Catsuits and Navy agents in Fishnets, Split-flap displays on convoluted control desks, and incredulously corny lines with matching cinematography.  I know they make a vague reference to UFO in XCOM, a passive comment about Commander Straker being a nut ranting about shadow operatives, so I just had to watch it.  I do not regret it.

I swear if I get this board game I will need to play this in the background.  Otherwise, I want to see an XCOM mod that turns it into UFO.  It'd be Brilliant!